Hindsight from The New Gun Week November 10, 1998
Election Season News Potpourri
by Joseph P. Tartaro
Executive EditorElection season news is always curious. While candidates bash each other with negative campaigns, one often wonders what the electorate is really thinking. This is what prompted the WorldNewsNet, an Internet news website, to poll those who access their site in the weeks immediately preceding this year's elections.
While the people accessing the site are probably more interested in news, politics and the elections than the average American, it is interesting to note the answers that have been collected to date.
As of Oct. 27, when asked "How will you vote on Nov. 3?", the number and percentage of respondents breaks down as follows:
All Democratic 88 0.92 %
Mixed ballot 1633 17.11 %
All Republican 6676 69.94 %
Third party 884 9.26 %
Not voting 264 2.77 %
TOTAL 9545 100.00 %
If this were a true poll, it would point toward a GOP landslide. But it is not a random scientific poll.
However, it does say a lot about the people who seek out and use alternative news sources, such as the Internet, small magazines and radio.
At first glance, the poll suggests that people who plan to vote Republican far exceed all others using the WorldNewsNet website and responding to the question. That's not so surprising, since Democrats would seem to be more likely to be satisfied with the traditional establishment media-news magazine, newspapers, television or websites slanted toward their viewpoint-than folks who lean toward the GOP and third parties.
What seems most interesting, however, is the relative few who will be splitting their ballot rather than voting a straight ticket. Only about 1 in 6 appears to be willing to vote for the individual or issues rather than for a particular party. For gunowners, that is significant. A higher percentage of gunowners usually can be expected to cast their ballots on the basis of the gun rights issue, voting for the best candidate on that issue, regardless of party affiliation or endorsement. That's because the gun issue cuts across party lines, as you can see by looking at any pro-gun organization's candidate ratings or endorsements.
The relatively low number of people in the poll who will be splitting their tickets suggests that the website browsers have probably made up their minds on perceptions of party philosophy rather than actual candidate positions.Tough Campaign
The "Give It A Shot" program provides benefits for everyone involved.
The people who come out for the free event have an opportunity to experience the fun of shooting a shotgun, rifle and handgun in a friendly, supportive and safe environment. Their curiosity about guns and their wholesome, lawful use is satisfied by hands-on experience and one-on-one interaction with qualified instructors. The experience of The American Shooting Club and host clubs in trial events is that most first-time shooters want to keep shooting. At the end of each formal program, about mid-afternoon of the "Give It A Shot" day, they are all invited to continue to shoot any or all of the available guns, get additional coaching and continue the pleasurable shooting experience if they choose, just by staying on and paying the cost of additional ammunition. Most choose to continue the shooting experience immediately. Others make arrangements to return to the club.
The host club enjoys favorable publicity and community exposure, and has a chance to expand its own membership or transient guest base. In addition, the host club earns a premium incentive point for each new member that joins TASC. These points, redeemable for merchandise, enable a club to acquire items such as microwaves, refrigerators, power mowers and chain saws. The premiums become the property of the club and can be used for club benefit or as prizes in fund-raising raffles.
Participating firearms industry companies and local gun dealers who help promote the event gain from the favorable exposure to new shooters for their companies and products. Needless to say, the local retailers that place "Give It A Shot" event announcement posters in their places of business, also build customer goodwill, especially with the pro-gun community.
National shooting, hunting, game conservation and pro-gun organizations benefit from the free distribution of their own promotional materials by The American Shooting Club and its host clubs.
The firearms community as a whole benefits from an expanded base among the general public, with more people having a better understanding of firearms issues and a personal stake in the right to keep and bear arms.
Eco-terrorism
Some environmentalists apparently aren't willing to pursue their political agenda legally. The ragtag attacks by environmental activists to free animals and thwart developers are now a full-scale battle, and observers are worried someone will get hurt.
"They've stepped over a line they've never crossed before. Now they no longer care what the public thinks. They're also getting more professional," said Ron Arnold, vice president of the Center for the Defense of Free Enterprise, an organization that tracks crimes committed to protect nature.
"There's more violence. That really bothers me," he said.
On Oct. 21, an underground organization called the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) claimed responsibility for fires in Vail, CO, two days earlier that caused $12 million in damage, the costliest act of eco-terrorism in America. No one has been arrested.
"This was a surprise because it was so bold," Arnold, who is based in Bellevue, WA, told Associated Press.
Arnold said attacks by radical environmentalists have increased steadily over the 20 years since the Ecoraiders, a group of teenagers, caused more than $2 million damage in the Santa Catalina mountains near Tucson, AZ, destroying billboards and houses to stop developers.
Since then, more than 1,500 attacks by different groups have been reported. Loggers and mill workers have reported serious injuries from cutting trees containing spikes. Environmental groups say they aren't to blame for the injuries because they warn loggers to avoid the trees.
Arnold, who testified at congressional hearings on eco-terrorism in June, said members of Earth First! risked injuries or death in 1988 with an attack on the Arizona Snowbowl, a ski area near Flagstaff, AZ, using explosives to damage ski lifts.
But environmental extremists ratcheted up the pressure when seven fires were set on Vail Mountain, destroying three buildings and damaging four chairlifts.
The fire came only a few days after Vail began clearing trees on an expansion project bitterly opposed by environmentalist groups who say the expansion would interfere with plans to reintroduce the lynx to the region.
In a letter sent to news media, the ELF said it carried out the Vail arson "to stop the destruction of natural habitat and the exploitation of the environment."
The ELF was founded in Britain in 1992 by Earth First! members frustrated with the lack of progress in protecting nature. Last June, it claimed responsibility for spraying red paint on the Mexican Consulate in Boston to protest the treatment of peasants in Chiapas, Mexico.
Since December, the ELF has taken at least partial responsibility for a number of other acts, including fires at federal facilities in the Northwest.
Lawsuits to stop Vail's expansion into 885 acres of back country have centered on its negative impact on the lynx and have largely targeted the resort because it is the last place the lynx was seen. But a federal court recently turned down a request for an injunction to halt Vail's construction. The coalition plans to appeal the ruling.
The New Gun Week is published three times a month by the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) on the 1st, 10th, and 20th. Hindsight is a commentary written by SAF President and Gun Week Executive Editor Joseph P. Tartaro. This commentary may be reprinted so long as credit is given to the author and the publication. For more information or to subscribe, write Gun Week, PO Box 488, Buffalo, NY 14209, or call 716-885-6408 Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST, or inquire on Compuserve to John Krull, Production manager-JohnSAF@Compuserve.com or gunweeksaf@broadviewnet.netAlso, check out the New Gun Week at http://www.GunWeek.com